APK BRO™ - Download APK Android Apps: 02/16/16

Tuesday, February 16, 2016

AT&T Promo Nets Up to $650 if You Switch From Verizon, T-Mobile or Sprint

For those who may be looking to switch to AT&T from a competing carrier, Big Blue is offering a promotion that could net you up to $650 in credits. There are quite a few steps in order to get the full credit amount, so let’s get started.

First, you will need to be switching from Verizon, Sprint or T-Mobile, and have a smartphone that you are able to trade-in. You will need to head into an AT&T retailer or do this online, starting by purchasing a new phone through AT&T Next. Then, activate the device on an eligible plan, port your current phone number to AT&T, and then trade-in your current smartphone.

This promo can be doubled with the other AT&T deal that allows new customers to buy one LG or Samsung smartphone and get one free. Details on that promo can be viewed here.

A full set of details can be viewed below.

Details

Purchase a new smartphone on AT&T Next, activate a new line of qualified postpaid wireless service with AT&T, and port your number from Verizon, Sprint or T-Mobile.
Trade-in your current eligible smartphone (minimum $10 value) online or in our stores and receive either AT&T store credit or an AT&T Promotion Card in the amount of your trade-in value.
Submit the final statement from your previous carrier online.
Receive an AT&T promotion Visa pre-paid gift card in the amount of the early termination fee or device balance owed on your final bill minus your trade-in value.
Receive total credits of up to $650.

Via: AT&T

DEAL: SanDisk 200GB MicroSD Card Drops to $90

Yesterday, we reminded you that it might be time to stock up on microSD cards, since we are less than a week away from hearing about this year’s flagships, all of which are expected to support expandable storage. If you held out from yesterday’s deal, you have another chance today at even more storage. The SanDisk 200GB microSD card has dropped to $89.95 for the day, which as far as we can tell, is the lowest price yet.

The 200GB card from SanDisk arrived at last year’s MWC with a retail price of around $240. In less than a year, we have seen the price drop regularly to around the $100 mark. But again, $90 is the lowest to date and shouldn’t be slept on if you need this much expandable storage.

Amazon Link

Reseller Listing From Dubai Provides Best Shots of LG G5 Yet

A listing on a reseller site out of Dubai has provided a few unique, close and personal photos of the LG G5. Until today, we have seen the device in various cases and a dummy box, but this is the first time we have seen the phone sans all hardware protection.

Listed as an import from the US ahead of official launch, the price was set at AED 2,500, which converts to nearly $700 in the US. Since then, the listing is not available, although, a cached version of it can still be viewed on the web. Thankfully, before it was gone forever, someone was able to snag all of the photos and place them on imgur for our viewing pleasure.

As we can see from the two photos, the G5 features the dual rear-facing cameras we expected, as well as a fingerprint reader. However, as already detailed, the volume rocker has been moved to the side of the phone. As for the front side, there is not much to detail except for the apparent lack of a secondary ticker display, which was previously reported to be featured. It should be noted LG has stated that the G5 will feature an always-on display, basically dispelling any notion that we should expect a secondary display for this functionality.

In the photo that shows the backside, we can make out what appears to be a button of some kind near the bottom portion on the side. If the reports of a modular G5 are to be believed, then this could be the button that releases the battery compartment from the device, allowing folks to replace the battery as they see fit.

Photos are not always the best means of portraying a smartphone’s build quality, but this G5 does appear to feature an aluminum casing, and not plastic as we have seen from LG in the past. So far, many of the reports we have heard about LG producing a very premium device for 2016 appear to be accurate.

Do these images make you more excited for the G5?

Via: dubizzle (cached) | imgur

Question of the Day: Have You Ever Used Bloatware? Which Apps and Why?

After reading the announcement from HTC and Keeper about a partnership that will be used to add more pre-loaded apps to your next phone, it got me wondering – do any of you use any of the bloatware on your phones?

We talk a lot of trash about bloatware because more often than not, the 3rd party apps that manufacturers and carriers are including are, well, trash. These are apps like CityID, Caller Name ID, Whitepages, Yellowpages, random kids games, 3rd rate office suites, and all of the carrier-owned apps like VZ or AT&T Navigator and poorly done cloud apps. In most situations, I doubt that these would be the apps you decide to install after browsing Google Play. Most lack features, have 3rd-rate UIs, and are no where near being better alternatives than options like Google Maps or Dropbox. But carriers and manufacturers continue to push them, because there must be big money involved in bloatware.

The other reason we all hate bloatware is because for years, until Google stepped up and added app disabling, you couldn’t remove these apps. Instead, they sat there in your app drawers, taking up space and storage, potentially killing your battery life, and maybe even hurting the performance of your phone. Bloatware suck.

So tell us, have you ever used any of the bloatware on your phone(s)? If so, which apps and why? What was it that grabbed your attention and turned you away from disabling?

This New Android “Monotune” Commercial is Quite Good

And it was also accompanied by these Tweets, which could be quite confusing without context.

Cccccc C cc cccccc cccc ccccccc. Cccc C. Ccc C. Cccc, cccc C.

Cc cccccccc. #CccCccCccc

— Android (@Android) February 16, 2016

C ccccc ccc cc cccc. Cccc ccc cc ccccccccc. Ccc cccc cc cccc cccc ccc ccc cccc?

Cc cccccccc. #CccCccCccc

— Android (@Android) February 16, 2016

Cc cccccccc. #CccCccCccc (cccc)
=
Be together. #NotTheSame (keys)https://t.co/tIy2Yzax9l

— Android (@Android) February 16, 2016

If you still aren’t getting it, be sure to watch the making of video below.

LG Bringing Stylus 2 to MWC, Features 5.7″ HD Display and Marshmallow

Set to be unveiled at MWC next week, the Stylus 2 from LG is a sequel to last year’s G4 Stylus. As a budget-friendly phablet device, the Stylus 2 features a 5.7″ HD In-Cell Touch display, along with a built-in stylus for all of your multitasking needs.

Other specs include a 1.2GHz quad-core processor, 13MP rear-facing camera, 2GB of RAM, 3,000mAh battery, and Marshmallow at launch. LG’s big work on this device was spent on the software, and it is quite reminiscent of Samsung’s Note software. For example, when you remove the stylus from the device, a popup of shortcuts appears for easy access to note taking and other functionality. In addition, the device will warn you if you begin to move while the stylus bay is empty. This should prevent you from misplacing the stylus.

Noticeably thinner and lighter than the G4 Stylus, the Stylus 2 weighs in at only 145 grams, measuring at 155 x 79.6 x 7.4mm. For a device of this size, featuring a full stylus, 7.4mm is pretty thin. To compare, the Galaxy Note 5 has a thickness of 7.6mm.

As for availability, the device will be shown off at MWC next week, although, we have no word on whether we will see it launched in the US. It does feature LTE connectivity, but if LG treats the Stylus 2 like it did the G4 Stylus, we probably won’t see it at all in the States.

Check out the full specs below.

Specs

Display: 5.7-inch HD In-Cell Touch (1280 x 720)
Chipset: 1.2GHz Quad-Core
Camera: Rear 13MP / Front 8MP
Memory: 1.5GB LPDDR3 RAM / 16GB ROM / MicroSD
Battery: 3,000mAh (removable)
Operating System: Android 6.0 Marshmallow
Size: 155 x 79.6 x 7.4mm
Weight: 145g
Network: LTE / HSPA+ / GSM
Connectivity: Wi-Fi 802.11 b, g, n / Bluetooth 4.1 / USB 2.0
Colors: Titan / White / Brown

Via: LG

HTC Partners With Keeper to Add New Bloatware to Future Phones

This morning, HTC and Keeper Security announced a new partnership that will allow the password locker company to pre-install their Keeper app on your newly purchased Android device. If you are at all like me, you just read that as “HTC has partnered with Keeper to pre-load more bloatware on your new phone.”

By pre-loading Keeper, HTC is giving their customers a chance to get in on the password locker game, which means prompts to save passwords, create stronger ones, or autofill forms. It also means that your passwords are all stored in one place and are accessible from anywhere. Password lockers are actually quite useful (I use LastPass multiple times per day and love it), assuming you don’t mind a 3rd party outfit having every single one of your passwords kept behind supposed lock and key.

In today’s announcement, HTC also says that when a customer with a Keeper-loaded device opens a website or app, they will be prompted to sign up for Keeper. Hopefully, for everyone’s sake, that only happens once and isn’t a prompt that continually shows up.

Look, password lockers like Keeper are quite useful to those interested in them, but bloatware is bloatware. And bloatware that prompts you to use it isn’t something anyone is asking for. I don’t mind partnerships between manufacturers and app developers – they just better make it clean (allow uninstalls) and not spammy.

Play Link

Via: Digital Journal

Droid Life Q&A Sessions: Volume 37

We are opening up Volume 37 of the DL Q&A Sessions, on the eve of MWC 2016. With many things in store, this will be your last chance to ask us whatever you may want to know about what we can expect from Samsung, LG, Sony, and maybe HTC. Thankfully, there has been no shortage of intel on both the LG G5 and Galaxy S7, so really, all we’re waiting for are both companies to make the official announcements this upcoming Sunday.

If your mind is not entirely on Android this week, we could also discuss the felony robbery that took place on Saturday night during the NBA dunk contest. In my view, there is absolutely no way that Aaron Gordon did not deserve the crowning. Judges, you blew it. Of course, you can ask us anything else that might be on your mind, too.

This Friday, we will go through your questions and do our best to answer as many as we can.

To see all of our previous Q&A’s, check them out here.

Verizon’s 2GB of Bonus Data Per Month for Life Promo is Back Again

Back in December, Verizon ran a promo that would land you an extra 2GB of bonus data per month per line for life. All you needed to do to get the 24GB of extra data each year was sign-up or be on an XL or XXL plan and then upgrade to or activate a new phone. Today, that promo returns for a limited time.

As a recap, the deal works something like this. Sign-up for an XL (12GB for $80) or XXL (18GB for $100) plan, then upgrade to or activate a new phone. For each line that you do so, you’ll receive an extra 2GB of bonus data per month. If you have a family of four and they all upgrade to new phones on an XL or XXL plan, you’ll then get an extra 8GB of data per month or 96GB per year for life. The data is also shareable across your family plan.

You can read more details about the promo at Verizon’s site.

Via: Verizon

Video: Samsung Mobile President Shares His Vision for Galaxy S7 and 2016

Samsung’s new President of Mobile Communications, Dongjin Koh, sat down with Samsung Newsroom to go over his vision for the Galaxy S7, as well as what fans can expect in the mobile department from the company in 2016. Sadly, even though the name Galaxy S7 is mentioned in the video, Koh was pretty tightlipped in terms of specific features or upcoming products. However, he does deliver a decent broad picture with regard to Samsung’s continuation to innovate in the mobile space, claiming that Samsung is not afraid to be “adventurous.”

When asked what customers can expect from the Galaxy brand, Koh states that Samsung has not accepted imposed limits, and that they do not fear the unknown. The Galaxy brand will continue to move forward, trying new things and inventions.

To highlight Samsung’s lack of fear, Koh brings up the Galaxy Note line, which opened up the “phablet” market. “We have done the same again with the dual edge experience of the Galaxy S6 Edge smartphone.” The mobile vision will remain the same, and Samsung will continue to deliver a unique mobile experience for its users.

In closing, Koh hopes that anyone who lays hands on the Galaxy S7 will provide feedback.

We are only one week away from the unveiling of the Galaxy S7 at MWC. We have been seeing leaks left and right, with likely more to come. Are you excited for this lineup of phones?

Via: Samsung

This Llama Just Unboxed the Galaxy S7

Ready to see the first Samsung Galaxy S7 unboxing? This llama, whose name is Kuzco, has you covered. He event attempts to re-create what he saw. Yes, the llama does all of that.

Damn. Hell of a painting, llama.

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Tuesday, February 16, 2016

AT&T Promo Nets Up to $650 if You Switch From Verizon, T-Mobile or Sprint

Via: AT&T

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DEAL: SanDisk 200GB MicroSD Card Drops to $90

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Reseller Listing From Dubai Provides Best Shots of LG G5 Yet

Via: dubizzle (cached) | imgur

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Question of the Day: Have You Ever Used Bloatware? Which Apps and Why?

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This New Android “Monotune” Commercial is Quite Good

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LG Bringing Stylus 2 to MWC, Features 5.7″ HD Display and Marshmallow

Via: LG

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HTC Partners With Keeper to Add New Bloatware to Future Phones

Via: Digital Journal

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Droid Life Q&A Sessions: Volume 37

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Verizon’s 2GB of Bonus Data Per Month for Life Promo is Back Again

Via: Verizon

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Video: Samsung Mobile President Shares His Vision for Galaxy S7 and 2016

Via: Samsung

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This Llama Just Unboxed the Galaxy S7

Via: Samsung

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